Key sources available when trying to trace your ancestors in Westmeath.
A new resource was developed during 2018 / 2019 which allows access to internment records for council managed cemeteries. This is searchable by individual name and address using drone imagery in the background to provide a detailed map imagery of the plot locations.
The resource is viewable here and was developed with support from the Department of Rural & Community Development.
The Tithe Applotment Books are a vital source for genealogical research for the pre-Famine period, given the loss of the 1821-51 Census records. They were compiled between 1823 and 1837 in order to determine the amount which occupiers of agricultural holdings over one acre should pay in tithes to the Church of Ireland (the main Protestant church and the church established by the State until its dis-establishment in 1871).
1823-1837 on microfilm * gives details of land owners, areas of farms, valuation and amount of tithe payable. Originals are held in the National Archives, Bishop St., Dublin, 8. Tel. 01 4783711.
Griffith ’s Valuation is the name widely given to the Primary Valuation of Ireland, a property tax survey carried out in the mid-nineteenth century under the supervision of Sir Richard Griffith. The survey involved the detailed valuation of every taxable piece of agricultural or built property on the island of Ireland and was published county-by-county between the years 1847 and 1864.
Available in Mullingar Library. Original maps in the Valuation Office, Irish Life Centre, Abbey Street Lower, Dublin 1. Tel. 01 8171000. Online access available at www.askaboutireland.ie
available at each Parish Church, The National Library of Ireland, Kildare St., Dublin 2. Tel. 01 6030200 and at Dun Na Si Heritage Centre, Moate, Co. Westmeath. Tel. 090 6481183 or dunnasimoate@eircom.net Dun na Si charge a research fee.
The National Library of Ireland has microfilmed registers from the majority of Catholic parishes in Ireland and Northern Ireland during the 1950s and 1960s. Digital images from these microfilms are now freely available at https://registers.nli.ie/
for Mullingar Parish are held at the Local Studies Dept., Mullingar Library. Baptisms are indexed alphabetically under the child’s name and lists the fathers name and the mothers maiden name. Marriages are recorded in the bride’s parish and are indexed alphabetically under the husband’s name. Copyright belongs to Mullingar Parish.
For more information on sources please see https://www.irishgenealogy.ie/en/irish-records-what-is-available/church-records
are held at the base Church, the National Library of Ireland and at The Representative Church Body Library, Braemore Park, Churchtown, Dublin 14. Tel. 01 4923979
The List of Parish Registers and details of surviving records can be found online at https://www.ireland.anglican.org/about/rcb-library/list-of-parish-registers
Non Catholic Marriages are recorded from 1845. All births, marriages and deaths are recorded from 1864. Research facilities are available at the General Register Office, Irish Life Centre, Abbey St. Lower, Dublin 1. Tel. 01 6354422. Queries with an exact date may be obtained from the General Register Office, Government Office, Convent Road, Roscommon. Tel. 090 6632900. Availability will depend on the event having being registered in the first place. Charges may apply.
listed in Westmeath Journal 1823-1826 and 1827-1834 by Simon L.M. de Montfort. Available at the Local Studies Dept., Mullingar Library, by kind permission of the author.
The 1901 census is the first available census that lists all occupants residing in the house on the night of the Census. It records name, relationship to head of household, age, occupation, and County of origin. The reels are not indexed but townlands are listed alphabetically within the District Electoral Division.
The Census 1901/1911 is available to search online at http://www.census.nationalarchives.ie/
edited by Seamus Pender lists the names of persons with title to land, the total number of English & Irish people living in each townland and the principal Irish names in each Barony. An online version is available at http://www.irishmanuscripts.ie/digital/censusofireland1659/index.html
is a useful guide when trying to locate a townland. It records County, Barony, Parish, Union and District Electoral Division.
The Irish OpenStreetMap community are currently actively tracing all townland boundaries from GSGS 3906 map sheets into the OpenStreetMap database. You can access their Townlands in Ireland at https://www.townlands.ie/
Variety of directories on CD-Rom & Printed format including Pigots, Slators and Thoms contain valuable information on major towns within counties. Towns covered for Westmeath include Mullingar, Athlone, Castlepollard and Kilbeggan.
* denotes holdings in Local Studies Departments in Mullingar Library and Aidan Heavey Library, Athlone